The Presidential Palace (), formerly the Royal Palace () and popularly known as the Palace of Brigades (), is the official residence of the president of Albania. The palace was commissioned by King Zog I of the Albanians to serve as his main

official residence An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of th ...

. In 1945, it ceased to serve as a royal residence because the monarchist regime was substituted by a

Communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

-ruled government. Since 1946, it has been used by the

Government of Albania Albania is a unitary parliamentary constitutional republic, in which the president of Albania is the head of state and the prime minister of Albania is the head of government in a multi-party system. The executive power is exercised by the G ...

for holding official ceremonies and state receptions. In 2013, the palace became an official residence once again, when

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Bujar Nishani and his family moved into a reconstructed villa inside the grounds of the palace. Architecturally, the palace belongs to a

rationalism In philosophy, rationalism is the Epistemology, epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "the position that reason has precedence over other ways of acquiring knowledge", often in contrast to ot ...

style. It is unique in its genre, not only in the country but in the wider sphere of

fascist architecture Fascist architecture encompasses various stylistic trends in architecture developed by architects of fascist states, primarily in the early 20th century. Fascist architectural styles gained popularity in the late 1920s with the ri ...

, including in Italy itself. Its bas-reliefs were covered with drapes in the 1970s during the

cultural revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...

, but not destroyed. Nevertheless, the palace as a whole is in dire need of restoration. A description of the then new (and unfinished) Royal Palace appeared in the issue of ''

Life Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...

'' dated 22 May 1939.

History

The idea to build a royal palace on one of the hills of Sauk, near what was later to become the Grand Park of Tirana, was first conceived by King Zog I in the 1930s. Because of the limited funds of the nascent Albanian state, the then Minister of Finance, Mufid Libohova, entered into negotiations with a group of Italian financiers represented by Mario Alberti. An agreement was made for the opening of a national bank and for a loan of 50,000,000 gold francs (approximately 10,000,000 gold dollars). Part of this loan, also called "The SVEA Loan", was earmarked for the construction of his official residence, making it possible for the King to secure the funds to build the Royal Palace. The new palace was designed by three Italian architects, including Giulio Berte. Due to the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and the 1939

Italian Invasion of Albania The Italian invasion of Albania was a brief military campaign which was launched by Fascist Italy, Italy against Albanian Kingdom (1928–1939), Albania in 1939. The conflict was a result of the imperialistic policies of the Italian prime m ...

, King Zog I fled Albania and never had a chance to see the palace fully constructed. The

Italians Italians (, ) are a European peoples, European ethnic group native to the Italian geographical region. Italians share a common Italian culture, culture, History of Italy, history, Cultural heritage, ancestry and Italian language, language. ...

finished construction and used the palace mainly for the Army Headquarters. The building was redesigned and completed in 1941, by the Florentine architect Gherardo Bosio. The building served as a functioning royal palace only once, for King Vittorio Emanuele III of Italy during his only visit to Albania in May 1941. During the remainder of the Second World War, it served as the

for Francesco Jacomoni, the first ''Luogotenente del Re'' (the title of the Italian

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...

), and later for his successor, the

fascist Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural soci ...

general Alberto Pariani. Both lived there along with their families. After Italy capitulated in September 1943, the Albanian officer who served the palace hid the Palace's official flag from the

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

and sent it to Italy, where it remained until 2003, when it was purchased by Artan Lame and returned to Albania. After the German takeover of the country in September 1943, the

Albanian parliament The Parliament of Albania () or Kuvendi is the unicameral representative body of the citizens of the Republic of Albania; it is Albania's legislature. The Parliament is composed of no less than 140 members elected to a four-year term on the b ...

convened in the Palace and proclaimed the detachment of the Albanian Crown from the Italian Crown. In 1945 the palace was renamed as the Palace of the Brigades, a name which remained in use throughout the Communist regime, and is still used popularly and by the Albanian media. During the

regime it served mainly as a government reception facility. The official name of the palace was changed after the fall of the Communist regime in 1992 as the Presidential Palace. In January 2010, the Municipality of Tirana proposed that parts of the palace be opened to the general public. On 8 October 2016, Leka II,

pretender A pretender is someone who claims to be the rightful ruler of a country although not recognized as such by the current government. The term may often be used to either refer to a descendant of a deposed monarchy or a claim that is not legitimat ...

to the throne of Albania, was allowed by the Albanian authorities to organise the wedding reception of his marriage to Elia Zaharia inside the premises of the Presidential Palace. File: Tirana Royal Palace Brigades 1937.jpg , Design of the entrance facade File: Royal-Palace-Brigades.jpg , Design of the garden facade File: Tirana Palace of Brigades Construction 1936.jpg , The palace being constructed (1936) File: Tirana Palace of Brigades 1939.jpg , The palace in 1939 File: Zog's palace, built by the Italians and then after the invasion turned into a military hospital on the orders of Victor Emmanuel III during the Italian occupation.png , The palace during the Italian occupation File: Pallati i Brigadave North side.jpg , The north side of the palace

Gardens

Because of its situation near the Grand Park of Tirana, the palace gardens are quite extensive. The Royal Palace is surrounded by trees for nearly 200 metres. The gardens are decorated in patterns and shapes of various designs. The palace also has a tennis court.

Challenge to government ownership

In February 2013, Leka Zogu, pretender to the throne of Albania and who styles himself as the

Crown Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent. ''Crown prince ...

of Albania, began a legal challenge, claiming that he was the rightful owner of the Presidential Palace on the grounds that the property had belonged to King Zog I in his personal capacity, and that thus Prince Leka retained ownership as the former's heir. Leka Zogu claims to have won ownership of the building after a decision of August 2013 by the

Supreme Court of Albania The Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania () is the supreme court, highest court of Albania and is the final court of appeals in the country's Judicial system of Albania, judicial system. It is composed of seventeen judges: the Chief Justice ...

, and has declared that the palace would become the main official residence of the "Royal Court of Albania" (); but as of 2016, the palace has remained in government possession and continues serving as the

of the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of the Republic of Albania, and State receptions and ceremonies, such as the annual end-of-year "Presidential Ball", continue to be held in the palace.Ja cfare ndodhi në "Ballon Presidenciale"
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References

External links

The Presidential Palace in 1939.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pallati I Brigadave 1941 establishments in Albania Government buildings in Tirana Buildings and structures in Tirana Palaces in Albania Royal residences in Albania Government buildings completed in 1941 Houses completed in 1941 Zog I Victor Emmanuel III

History

Gardens

Challenge to government ownership

See also

References

External links